Monthly Archives: March 2012

Justice Scalia can you at least give a notion of impartial integrity while wearing the black robe and stop playing to the Republican electorate? Asking if the national health care plan means that the government can force people to buy broccoli? Come on.

Justice Ginsberg, on the other hand, nailed it. If the health care plan (which mandates everyone must buy a policy) is deemed unconstitutional, then what’s to stop social security being next, since it forces everyone to invest in their retirement?

A fair question indeed, and appropriate.

The gist of the case is that if young ‘healthy’ people don’t buy insurance and then have an accident it costs the taxpayer. By not buying, they actually affect the market and therefore it falls under the Commerce Clause which gives Congress the constitutional power to regulate trade and impose their chosen policy upon the citizenry.

The precedent that the government cites when invoking the Commerce Clause is Wickard v. Filburn, a 1942 case in which a farmer was fined for growing more than his federally mandated wheat allotment even though the extra wheat was not sold and was instead used to feed his family and his livestock.

The farmer’s defense was that since he didn’t sell it, no commerce was involved, so the Congress had no power to fine him for exceeding the federal allowance on how much he can grow.

The court upheld the farmer’s fine reasoning that growing extra wheat had an impact on the overall national wheat market. Since Wickard paid nothing for the wheat he gave his family, it allowed him to not buy from the market thus, it affected the state of the market by increasing supply.

In broader terms, in the unlikely event that all farmers did this, the wheat market would crash. Therefore, there needed to be some regulation to prevent such things from happening.

We won’t know the court’s decision on “Obamacare,” a plan that was initially the brainchild of the conservative Heritage Foundation, until June.

The video below is a bit alarmist and ‘the world will end’ runs deep in the undertone, but it will give you a good briefing on the Commerce Clause, which is at the heart of the Obamacare case currently before the Supreme Court.

Now, back to my broccoli.

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Dick Cheney has a new heart. The former vice president and Guinness World Record aspirant with five heart attacks since his late 30s, got a heart transplant on Saturday after waiting more than 20 months on a transplant list.

I am impressed with the fact that he waited 20 months and didn’t use his political and financial influence to jump ahead to the front of the line. It shows there was a large measure of good in Cheney’s previous and much publicized bad heart.

“Although the former Vice President and his family do not know the identity of the donor, they will be forever grateful for this lifesaving gift,” Cheney aide Kara Ahern said in a statement issued Saturday night. Ahern said Cheney “is thankful to the teams of doctors and other medical professionals at Inova Fairfax and George Washington University Hospital for their continued outstanding care.”

Unknown donor? You can be sure the tabloids are on that story. A month from now we’ll find out Cheney’s new heart came from a 43-year-old poetry major at Berkeley who was living with her 13 cats in a sublet in West Oakland.

The 71-year-old former Vice President believes same sex marriage should be legalized on a state-by-state basis and that the federal government has no place in such matters. That must make for good conversation at Republican retreats, in between the oil wrestling and games of Risk using live actors.

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Sick Rick Santorum’s campaign plans to unveil an 8-part video series called “Obamaville” on its website in the coming days, depicting a dystopian future where everything bad that can happen does following an Obama re-election. Have a look at the preview for yourself.

I am no big fan of Barack Obama, but to show Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad morphing into U.S. President right about the time the narrator says “sworn American enemy,” is simply deplorable.

Considering that Santorum has recently been catching slack for saying that electing Romney would be no better than reelecting Obama, it would seem the “Good Christian” Santorum’s moral compass has led him to the dark side. Whatever lessons Christ may have left behind about peace and love have been tossed to the wayside by the single minded obsession of Santorum who now worships the false idol of the Oval Office.

I never liked the guy, but it is sad to see such a degradation of character. Those looking for truth in Biblical prophesy might need look no further than Santorum, a possible anti-Christ donned in shepherds clothing leading double digit margins of voters in Louisiana and other state electorates who blindly cheer him on.

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On a lighter note: I offer a minor re-scripting of the video more appropriately tailored to the grim possibility of a Rick Santorum presidency.

Imagine a small American town two years from now if Rick Santorum is reelected.

Small businesses are closing as unregulated corporations take over. Families are worried about their jobs and their future.

The wait at the bank to get a loan to afford to see a doctor is ever-increasing. Gas Prices are at rock bottom yet the automobile is one of the few places to enjoy clean air. Christianity is the state religion and Israel has been allowed to nuke all of Islam. There’s a Walmart opening in Mecca in 2016.

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American president Barack Obama has nominated Jim Yong Kim, a global health policy expert and the president of Dartmouth College, to run the World Bank.

Though Kim has been living in America since shortly after getting out of diapers, the South Korean media will no doubt have a week of self-congratulatory backslapping in honor of his DNA with little mind paid to his being about as American as one can get.

A friend of mine from New Zealand said that as an American I simply will never understand when a country lays claim to famous or infamous Americans because of ethnic ties.

He’s right. I don’t understand it. If it was your family member, a neighbor or even someone you met in the checkout line, then OK, you can revel in a sense of pride. But if not, why?

Sometimes the ethnic “he’s one of us” connection goes to great extremes such as was seen with Korean American Virginia Tech gunmen, Seung Hui-cho. Following the massacre, there was an outpouring of grief among South Koreans as they struggled to understand how a “Korean” could have done such a terrible thing.

Then president, Roh Moo-hyun called a press conference to address the issue, (he even telephoned President Bush, who was reportedly befuddled by the call, to personally apologize) the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement and a Korean university held a public prayer session for the victims.

Puzzling, though I guess quaint in a way.

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At any rate, the appointment of Kim to the World Bank is being heralded as “groundbreaking.” Kim will be the first person from a minority community to head the bank. Just as Kim’s appointment as the first Asian-American to head an Ivy League university in 2009 was groundbreaking.

While the world will question the appointment of an American, Obama can’t win either way on this. If he had appointed a non-American in an election year, Romney and Santorum would paint him as even more anti-American than they already do.

If the administration had pushed a non-American for the job, this could have been attacked as Obama fostering the decline of American influence in the world,” said former IMF official Eswar Prasad, now an economics professor at Cornell University. “In an election year, Obama would have been accused of caving in to outside pressures and not being willing to protect U.S. interests.

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Three years ago I quit blogging. I instead decided to start a magazine. The mag is still going and where once I was alone putting the thing together it has grown into a partnership of four with countless contributing writers, photographers and artists. The one thing I miss most about blogging is that it is only me. Selfish? Yes, of course.

Funny thing though: in three years a person can change a lot. I was looking back over the 2 years worth of blogs I did before and wondered to myself who in the hell wrote all that? Whoever he was, he sure seemed a bit pissed off with the world. I like that guy. I miss that guy. He needs to come back in blog format rather than raving drunk in the street.

Three years of putting together a magazine in South Korea, home to some of the most stringent libel laws in the “free” world, will instill you with a filter for what you say and do in a public forum.

I’ve come back here to step back behind the filter and let it flow. Let’s see how it goes.

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As president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea, Amy Jackson brings with her an utterly impressive resume of international experience. She talks with Haps about the Chamber’s role in Korea and gives her take on the recently passed American-Korean FTA, the need for more transparency in Korean business, the expanding role of women in the workplace and more.

SEOUL, South Korea — The American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) has a long history of involvement in the South Korean economy going back to 1953, when it opened its first office here following the Korean War. The organization now counts in its ranks over 2,000 individual members representing over 1,000 member companies doing business here on the peninsula.

In August of 2009, AMCHAM tapped Ithaca, New York native, Amy Jackson, to take the helm, calling on her esteemed career working in Asia in both the public and private sectors. She has remained the president of AMCHAM ever since.

Following her studies at Johns Hopkins, Jackson took a job with NASA as an international relations specialist. Fluent in Japanese, she was a lead negotiator in numerous US-Japan space agreements during her eight-year tenure with the American space agency. Not bad at all, for a first job.

Following her work with NASA, she became the Director of Japanese Affairs for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative from 1998-2002. She then served as the Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Korea until 2005, and was involved in the initial formulation of the recently passed Free Trade Agreement between the U.S. and South Korea.

Jackson now resides in Seoul with her husband and their 7-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son. In her free time, she enjoys hiking Namsan Mountain, exploring Seoul and taking in the local restaurant fare, as well as learning the local lingo. “My whole family is learning Korean,” says Jackson. “My kids are now practicing in Korean shops and with Korean taxi drivers.”

Haps gave her Five Questions.

AMCHAM has been in Korea for nearly sixty years. What has been the primary focus of the organization and what are some of its accomplishments?

AMCHAM Korea was founded in 1953 with a broad mandate to encourage the development of investment and trade between Korea and the United States. American companies were on the ground assisting Korea in its efforts to rebuild the country after the war, and have been working here in partnership with Korean companies and consumers for many decades since. This is something in which AMCHAM and its members take great pride.

Our primary focus today is on representing the ideas, opinions, and concerns of our members to both the Korean and American governments. This includes providing input on how the United States and Korea can achieve their goals of promoting investment and trade between the two countries, growing jobs, and promoting a fairer and more transparent business environment.

AMCHAM has had many important successes in recent years that are of mutual benefit to the United States and Korea. AMCHAM was instrumental in Korea’s inclusion in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program in 2008.

Another significant achievement for us was the establishment of our charitable foundation called the Partners for the Future Foundation. This organization was founded in 2000 to help Korean students from unemployed families in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis. The Foundation has since raised over $10 million and funded scholarships for more than 1,700 Korean students to attend local universities.

Last but not least, AMCHAM was at the forefront of the effort to get a bilateral Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (“KORUS FTA”) launched, negotiated, and passed by the legislatures of both countries. We anxiously await the implementation of the historic KORUS FTA and are committed to working to ensure that the benefits of this agreement are fully realized by both U.S. and Korean large and small companies, consumers, and workers.

Korea has traditionally had a protected economy, which allowed its domestic business to grow and thrive. What are some of the fears in the Korean business community regarding free trade agreements with much larger economies such as the U.S., the EU and potentially Japan? What are the advantages for Korea in opening their economy up to the world?

The Korean economy has been growing and changing rapidly over the last several years. Korea companies are now global leaders in the auto, shipbuilding and IT sectors, and Korean companies are increasingly willing and able to compete with foreign companies in their own market and globally. Further, Korea’s economy relies heavily on exports (and notably, Korea’s two-way trade surpassed the $1 trillion mark in 2011), so Korea’s ambitious free trade agenda is important for Korea’s future economic growth. Korean society, on the whole, strongly supports this free trade agenda because they understand it will help create new export opportunities, provide new jobs, and also lower import prices at a time when inflation is of growing concern.

Korean policymakers have advocated for more FTA’s by noting that these agreements will encourage more competition and spur greater productivity and innovation by Korean companies, workers and farmers. The KORUS FTA, for example, calls for improvements in regulatory transparency and more consistency and predictability in the market that will encourage more competition, and give both domestic and foreign firms greater security in planning their business strategies and pursuing new investments in the Korean economy. This will benefit the business community and consumers alike, as well as attract more foreign investment into the nation.

There has been a lot of focus over the last year on Korean small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SME’s). Korean SME’s also stand to gain from the KORUS FTA. In a recent interview the Chairman of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (Kbiz), Kim Ki-moon, stated that the KORUS FTA will not only increase Korean SME exports to the U.S, but also expand opportunities for Korea’s SME’s to form partnerships with U.S. companies, allowing technology transfer and more foreign direct investment into the Korean economy.

That said, no free trade agreement can benefit every citizen in any country. In Korea, there are concerns that the agricultural sector could be harmed because of Korea’s FTA’s. But the Korean government, like the U.S. government, has introduced various policies to help ameliorate any negative effects of its FTA’s and to assist farmers and companies as the Korean market opens. I have recently read about how some of Korea’s local provinces are planning to use FTA’s to promote their local products in foreign markets for the first time. Such initiative show that even the agriculture sector can gain by becoming more globally competitive and finding new markets overseas.

The Korean business community is dominated by men, more so than any other country in the G20. As a woman heading the American Chamber of Commerce here, what has been your experience working in such a male-dominated business culture? Have you seen many changes in your time here in Korea?

Compared to ten years ago, I have seen more female representatives in the Korean public and private sectors, so I think the male-dominated business culture here is changing. There are so many well-educated and talented women in the work force here! AMCHAM is proud that U.S. companies have been a favored place to work for Korean woman, as our companies have been leaders in providing Korean women with excellent opportunities for growth and advancement. Examples abound. FedEx Korea is led by an outstanding female Korean leader, Chae Eun-mi. Pfizer Korea has been in the news recently for promoting one of its local female executives to a management position in its New York headquarters. In 2011, more than 19 percent of those promoted in GM Korea were women, which is a record for the automaker. GM Korea now has about 900 female employees, more than tripling the number in 2002.

The Korean government has implemented various policies to create a level playing field for women in the workforce, but I think one of the biggest challenges here is societal attitudes toward working women. One of these (which is, indeed, found in many places in the world) is the expectation that working women should work all day and then go home and do all the cooking, cleaning, and childcare. This attitude is one that must change for working women here to be successful.

A number of Korean working women have confided in me that they think they may have to give up their careers because they cannot balance “work” work and “home” work. Some have said that they do not want to have children because having a child will mean they have to give up their careers. It is clearly in Korea’s interest to pave the way forward for all the bright and talented Korean women who aspire to have a career and a family -– and one of the key steps to reach that goal would be to change Korean societal views on women and their “jobs.”

The world’s largest retailer, Wal-Mart, sold its sixteen Korean locations, packed up and went home, citing a difficulty in penetrating the local market. If a leviathan like Wal-Mart can fail here, it might very well make other businesses weary of expanding into the Korean market. What advice would you give to businesses that are considering expanding here on the peninsula?

There are many reasons for Wal-mart’s departure from the Korean market. What is more indicative of the vast business opportunities in the Korean market are the growing number of foreign companies that are entering, expanding, and thriving in the Korean market. Costco, for example, is doing very well in Korea. Indeed, its Yangjae store has the highest sales per square meter of any Costco in the world.

In Korea, forming mutually-beneficial relationships and trust are important if you are looking for long-term success. As with any other foreign market, efforts to understand the Korean market and culture are needed. Korea is also a fast-paced country (bballi-bballi culture!) with rapidly changing market conditions, so quick decision making is also important. For U.S. companies interested in entering the market, we advise them to take time to learn about the local population, network with U.S. firms already doing business here to get as much insight and connections possible, and be sure to take advantage of all the resources that are available to help them succeed in the Korean market.

There are a number of AMCHAM members who can provide valuable advice and know-how for companies interested in investing/expanding in Korea. Further, the Commercial service at the U.S. Embassy, as well as several Korean government organizations such as Invest Korea (KOTRA) also provide various kinds of support to U.S. companies investing here.

The business culture in America and Korea are often cited as being quite different. What are some of the most common difficulties that American-run businesses have doing business here? What are some of the advantages and benefits?

One of the key complaints of foreign companies doing business in Korea is the lack of regulatory transparency. Too often, new rules that affect foreign firms’ ability to do business are enacted in Korea without sufficient notice, or involvement of the foreign business community. It is essential that the government make greater efforts to ensure that new policies and changes to existing policies are developed and implemented in a way that allows all stakeholders, both domestic and foreign, a chance to provide meaningful input into the process.

In addition, there are still areas in which Korea is creating and/or adopting new standards that are unique to Korea. This can make it difficult for foreign companies to do business here. Having to dedicate one production line for the Korean market and a separate production line for the rest of the world is not cost efficient for foreign or domestic companies. Korea has been moving more toward the use of international standards over the last few years, and we hope this trend will continue.

For more info on the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea, visit there website at www.amchamkorea.org

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GENEVA, Switzerland — South Korea has long argued that the North Korean defectors should be treated as refugees and not be returned to North Korea where they often face severe punishment and even death. China, on the other hand, does not agree.

The Chinese government, which has repatriated large numbers of defectors over the years, claims they do so because those that cross are entering China for economic reasons and do not merit protection as ‘refugees.’

In effect, China is either in complete denial that repatriated North Koreans are exposed to extreme punitive actions upon their return, or simply place no value on the lives of those they send back across their border.

In response to China recently returning 31 North Koreans, four South Korean lawmakers waited outside a UN meeting in Geneva on Tuesday to have their say not with Chinese diplomats, but with those from North Korea. And the exchange didn’t take place on the chamber floors, but outside in the halls.

The South Korean legislators pushed towards the NK diplomat chanting slogans urging both sides to stop repatriation, which South Korea and most of the world believes is a breach of international obligations.

“Repatriation of North Korean defectors is not just a matter concerning Korean people, but it’s a matter of infringement of universal human values,” said Rep. Kim Hyung-oh, a former parliamentary speaker who led the delegation. “It is regrettable that Chinese authorities have not changed their attitude even though they know what kind of situations North Korean defectors could face when they are sent back to the North.”

The North Korean Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that South Korea was “foolish” to bring up the issue of sending back defectors on the international stage at the UN. China offered no comment on the altercation.

While Mormal-Vanian has a point that civil discourse is the ideal, sometimes you’ve just gotta step up. Who can blame the four SK lawmakers for their behavior when considering the circumstances?

At a recent protest in Seoul, a defector who was caught by China and sent back, but eventually made it into South Korea, told media covering the demonstration: “In North Korea, I was forced into labor, and I can’t even begin to describe how harsh it was,” the defector said, her voice breaking. “When I recall the memory of repatriation, I get chills down my spine. The detainees’ crime is only their desperate hunger and wishes to be reunited with their family.”

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Bobby McGill has worked as a professional journalist for over 15 years, starting out as a business staff writer covering Silicon Valley at the height of the Dot Com Boom for the San Francisco Chronicle. He has also written for a variety of major publications covering Politics, Business, Society, Arts/Entertainment and Travel as well as writing Social Commentary.

Currently Mr. McGill is a contributing blogger to Korea’s most widely read blog, The Marmot’s Hole and is the Editor in Chief of Haps Magazine which he founded in 2009.

He is also pursuing a PhD in Asian Studies while teaching in the Department of International Studies at Dongseo University in Busan, South Korea.